High school girls soccer: Impressive first half propels Mentor past West G

The outer reaches of West Geauga's Howell Field may not get a workout if the hosts are in a ground-oriented, between-the-tackles football game. When soccer is being played there, though, those outer reaches can get a workout, and Mentor did that with precision Saturday in a nonconference headliner. Cassie Rozic and Olivia Knapp each had a goal and an assist as the Cardinals recorded a 3-1 victory over the Wolverines in a battle of the Nos. 3 and 4 teams in the Top of the Crop. Mentor (2-2-1) has won six of the teams' last seven regular-season meetings dating to 2007. The Cardinals' wide game was impressive as the eventual final margin was accounted for in the opening 40 minutes. "It's awesome," Mentor coach Amanda Hart said. "Our girls have been really working the outside corners, going goal line and playing that slot ball. It's nice to see it come together. "Cassie Rozic is fantastic out wide, and Haley Vinborg, she really turned it on today. It was nice to see the results of their hard work today." The Cardinals opened their account in the 15th minute. Vinborg embarked on a run down the left flank and crossed into the box. Knapp got a touch to Amanda Cassella, who did well with a right-footed effort low. In the 18th minute, it became a 2-0 match. Rozic tried her luck with a right-footed bender from the top edge of the box that she managed to keep under the bar. Rozic went on a run wide right in the 29th minute, getting a step on her defender and serving a quality ball for Knapp, who put away her finish and pushed the advantage to 3-0. "I was really pleased," Rozic said. "Our team was going strong, and we didn't back down. We kept taking the ball to the corners and crossing it in, and that's how we got two of our goals today. "(Wide play) can be very dangerous. (Senior defender) Ally Dipre, she's awesome at taking the ball from the back and just sending that long ball over to the other wide forwards and outside mid. It's going to work, and we're going to get goals off it the rest of the season." West G (2-3) was not lacking in good midfield service in the first half, but the sledding was made more difficult as Mentor was working so efficiently into the offensive third and getting dividends from it. Just 48 seconds after Knapp's strike, the Wolverines got on the board. Striker Maria May put a through ball on the ground for Hanna Zuzek, whose right-footed strike made it a 3-1 match. West G didn't record its first shot on target of the second half until the 78th minute, and as the half wore on, the Cardinals' great early start grew in importance. "The whole game plan was to keep them from getting into the center and getting a shot off," Wolverines coach Jerod Koen said. "We knew that their forwards were going to be making runs to try and get through our defense also. The game plan for that shut down the passing lanes. "We knew (Rozic) would try to get to the endline and cross in. We game-planned for it. We just couldn't execute on it, and that's the difference." Mentor's opening five-match slate has been nasty, including N-H No. 1 Crop side Hawken, Brecksville and Twinsburg. Hart has been pleased with how her squad has been able to navigate it, and seeing an attacking performance like the one she witnessed Saturday makes it all the better. "They're working really hard," Hart said. "I am very pleased. You've got to play good teams to get better, and that's what they're doing. We've played some phenomenal teams already, and they're learning a lot and they're building from it."

Note: Video and audio content from Saturday's match can be found at the following links: